Forgetting

Lewis Hyde, “one of our true superstars of nonfiction” (David Foster Wallace), author of The Gift and Trickster Makes This World, presents a playful defense of forgetfulness. In A Primer for Forgetting, he explores the healing effect it can have on the human psyche, suggesting that we live in a culture that prizes memory—how much we can store, the quality of what’s retained, how we might better document and retain the moments of our life while fighting off the nightmare of losing all that we have experienced. But what if forgetfulness were seen not as something to fear—in the form of illness or simple absentmindedness—but rather as a blessing, a balm, a path to peace and rebirth?